Florence Weighs on Shildt

(Busch Stadium) As the rains and winds of Hurricane Florence have begun to inflict damage, St. Louis Cardinals Manager Mike Shildt is keeping a close eye on the storm–and his family near Charlotte, North Carolina.

“Talked to my mom today, they’re dealing with what’s coming in, nervous,” said Shildt. “But got some really amazing friends and neighbors that are looking in on her. Keep her in our prayers.”

Back in 1989, Hurricane Hugo caused similar issues in the area.

“Didn’t have any idea, I was in college and no cell phones,” said Shildt, who attended UNC-Asheville. “Called home on a Sunday and it happened like on a Wednesday. Realized there was some devastation that took place that I didn’t know about, so it’s not common but there is precedent. So we’ll find out.”

The Charlotte Observer is reporting there have been at least five deaths already due to Hurricane Florence. Gusts of wind are being recorded at over 100mph and are uprooting trees in addition to the rains and flooding.

“BE THE MATCH”

–For the third consecutive year, the St. Louis Baseball Writers have teamed up with the St. Louis Cardinals to host the #Join4Joe bone marrow donor drive at Busch Stadium. The event will take place from 10am-2pm on Saturday before the Cardinals take on the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The drive honors the late Joe Strauss, the St. Louis Post Dispatch sports writer who covered the Cardinals for 14 years before passing away due to leukemia in 2015.

At least one life has already been saved from a donor who signed up during a previous #Join4Joe drive.

“I was thrilled to hear that earlier this year,” said MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch, who has spearheaded the event. “I believe it was somebody who signed up at our drive last year and ended up being a match for a patient and went through with that process.”

Fans can stop by either the Budweiser Terrace or the Ford Plaza for information and to register with “Be the Match”, the world’s largest and most diverse donor registry.

A simple swab of the cheek could match a potential donor with one of the more than 14,000 people in need of help.

“Specifically, we’re hoping to look for donors between the ages of 18-44,” continued Langosch. “There’s also a great need for more diversity within the registry. From a personal standpoint, I’ve been touched by the Be the Match organization for many years, had many family and friends go through different blood cancers. One of those was a Native American woman and she was never able to find a match because they had so few Native Americans in the registry. Again, young people and minorities in particular, those are the folks that are really needed in this registry.”

Those interested in becoming donors but are unable to attend the game may receive more information and have a free kit mailed to them by visiting cardinals.com/join4joe or text CARDS to 61474.